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Locked in
went to exit coach and was unable to open door, have cycled pneumatic lock a few times to no avail. Waiting for Prevost to open to consult with them unless anyone here has an idea …….
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21 Replies
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Are you saying the air lock will not open ? If that’s the case try starting the bus, What’s not working door handle, dead bolt , or air lock more info needed
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I have cycled the air lock a few times and it seems to be working however door handle will not activate latch to open door
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Call me 307-331-5801 Can you open window and try outside door handle , try to pry the inside door panel open on one side and get to the inside of door
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He’s out after getting help from Jeff and taking the interior panel off… His problem was trying to get the interior handle off to remove the panel, the handle is held on by a C clamp that is hard to access.
Granvil says thanks….
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So lets get this cleared up.
Your locked inside your bus with a refrigerator full of adult beverages….and the problem is ?
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I was just getting ready to leave Rockford Near Chicago when he called me I told him to take door handle off and panel and get to inside of door ,but I had to start driving so I called Jon to keep helping him. Glad it worked out
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thanks to Peter , Jeff,Jon and Truck ….in my case the actuating plate that the control arms ( both outside and inside handles ) attach to failed, the pin that attached it to the outside door assy let go meaning the plate had nothing to pivot on and both inside and outside handles were useless. Ultimately I managed to get the inside panel off using a leatherman, small Philips and a modified shish Ka bob skewer ( the only tools I had in the bus) so here’s the takeaway: I would suggest that you become familiar with how to detach your inside door panel…types of fasteners etc and most importantly how the door handle is removed, in my case a C clip held it on and was a bastard to remove…..all the while knowing I had the correct tool in my tool bag 5 miles away, and have the appropriate tools inside the bus. Obviously in an emergency you can egress out a window but in my case I had a 90 lb Larador who needed to go out and he had declared an emergency. In any event all turned out well….got the parts overnighted from Prevost and had it back together in an hour.
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If you think about it, Granvil’s situation could have been very bad if he wasn’t able to get the door open. Many of us carry plenty of tools, but you have to get to a bay to retrieve your tools. If your young going out the emergency exit would not be a big deal, but for many of us, having to go out the exit could easily cause injury. Kicking out a windshield for a larger exit is an option, but the big windshields don’t come out as easy as you think.
We can make lots of jokes about it, but being locked in is a serious matter and we should have a plan in mind if it happens to us.
Good job Gdaddy, the Leatherman saved your day…
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I probably should have been more explicit about becoming familiar with the door and disassembly , the other mystery beside the door handle was what needed to be removed to actually get the panel off. In my case there were cosmetic buttons ( simple enough) over the Phillips screws….but then there was this big bolster kind of thing that is also a door handle for closing the door, my first effort at removing was to tear off a piece of wood trim that had stews behind it, turning those screws did absolutely nothing. Then I pulled on an upholstered inset which popped off and exposed three large screws that went through the door panel and into the frame . Fortunately I was able to re glue the wood strip without damage. So I guess my advice is to spend a little time to figure out how to remove door panel with a minimum of damage, in my case the inside screws ( near hinge) were inaccessible so I had to slip my hand behind door handle to pop the latch then remove the panel in its entirety once door was open. Ok, I think I’ve beat this subject to death.
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It has turned into a very important discussion and as Tom pointed out we all need a plan for dealing with a broken door handle.
This is not a remote or unheard of topic. There have been a number of posts about door latch failures so we all should take the time to develop a plan for how we will deal with such an event. In some cases our solution may be that the inside door panel can be removed so the mechanism can be operated to release the door.
Some conversions may be assembled in such a way that we may have to damage the inner door liner to get access to the latch mechanism. In some cases as a ready made solution we may want to rig up something we can access without tools to release the door latch, such as a wire that is barely visible, but which can be pulled to release the door. I am not sure there is a single best answer, but at the very least we all need to look carefully at our door and possibly remove the inner door panel so we understand what we may have to do in an emergency.
If we do take the time to develop a solution to being locked in (or out) it is almost a sure thing we will never need to use it. I know that for sure because I have anticipated problems such as the need for an inverter by-pass in the event of a failure, to a back up water pump and other solutions, all of which were for problems that never materialized.
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As part of the latch mechanism there is a circular wheel that has holes in it , while waiting for parts I put a couple of tie wraps through one of the holes and by pulling down was able to release the door latch . I toyed with the idea of attaching a thin cable to the hole and running to the base of the door which would necessitate only removing ( in my case ) a couple of screws to pry the panel back and get to the release cable.
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If your inside door panel has a “designer” bead running on it, chances are that the inside door panel may separate into two peices at the bead. The photo below will show a darker colored bead on my door panel which outlines a removable panel that provides access to the locks mechanism.
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Not all door latch mechanisms are going to be like Granvil has shown. But they all will have some door latch release mechanism. Mine does not have the “wheel” shown in the photo above, but does have a rod actuated release, so if I were to add some cable or wire to be used to trip the door latch it would be located at the point where the rod lifts the release.
Since my door is open because I replaced the motor for the power window I will add some emergency release cable to my door. It will be barely visible, but known to me so if I get locked out or in as a result of latch failure I will be able to use that cable. I just have to figure out the best way to do it and keep it somewhat concealed.
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Why would you mess with it put the updated latch in and be done with it and put new one in every two years and no problems ever , what its to much money , new one about 450.00 what’s a lock smith cost !! and the hassle to get in or out cost !!!!!!!
Edit about a 20 min fix once update is done to put new one in
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Just an observation that says if you feel you have to put in a new one every two years it means you have almost no confidence in the latching mechanism, updated or not.
I’m still going to figure out how to add a cable or some means of completely by-passing the mechanism.
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